Gas washing and cooling apparatus.



E. F. LLOYD.

GAS WASHING AND COOLING APPARATUS. PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP s.

1,083,885.. Patented Jan. 6, 1914.

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EENEsTr'. LLQYD, or' DETEOIT, MXGHIGANL eas 'WASHING Ann COOLINGArraaarus.

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Application filed February 3, 1913. Serial No.l745,95&

To all y107mm, it may concern:

Be it. known that I, ERNEST ll. LnoYD, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, re-

siding at Detroit, in the county of lVayne and State of Michigan, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Gras Washing andCooling'tpparatus, of which the following is a specification, referencebeing had therein to the accompanying drawings.

In the manufacture of gas for illuminating and heating purposes duringwhich the gas is freed of tars and other undesirable substances bywashing the gas, and in which the gas is thereby also reduced intemperature to a determined point, it is found that the quantity ofwashing liquor required to serve as a cooling medium is not alwayscoincident with the quantity required to clear or wash it of thesubstances referred to, so that the same amount of liquor which mayreduce it in temperature may not effectively clean it.

rlhis invention relates to a gas washing and cooling apparatus in whichthe washing liquor is circulated Within the series of chambers in such amanner that it lowers the temperature of the gas properly while at thesame time at cert-ain points in the circulatory system the liquor incontact with the gas may be increased or decreased in quantitiessufficient to both effectually reduce the temperature and remove theforeign constituents, tars, etc. The apparatus is also arranged so thatthe temperature at which the gas escapes may be regulated accuratelywhile not being at any point subject to arbitrary drops or reductions.lt also provides for the removal of any surplus of washing liquor as maybe produced from the condensation of aqueous vapors conta ined in thegas, or as may be introduced for the washing purposes, at the lowesttemperature reached in the-system, thereby removing from 'the system thegreatest quantity of ammonia per unit of` washing liquor removed.

Another feature of the invention relates to certain means wherebycertain portions of the apparatus may be cut out for cleansing or repairwithout necessarily stopping the operation of the apparatus as a whole.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter set forth and pointedout in the around and around in its cycles through the appended claims.

The drawing is a view that is largely diagrammatlc, partially inelevation and par- Specication of Letters -Patent.

Patented dan. 6, 1914.

tially in section, of one form/of apparatus that embodies features ofthe invention.

Referringto the drawing, a plurality of chambers are arranged in seriesso that gas entering the upper portion of a chamber '1 is led down apassage 2 along one wall, and A rising through a series of bailes orgrids 3 if preferred of any preferred type, escapes through a valvedconnection 4- or a suitable fitting into a passage 5 of a second chamber6 from whence it passes upwardly'through a second set of grids 8 thencethrough the valved connection a into a down passage 7 of another chamber8 from whence it escapes through anv outlet 4, the chamber 8 also havinggrids or baiiies 3. Obviously the series may be extended to have anynumber of chambers desired and the chambers may be proportioned to varythe necessary grid or batiling surface. Each chamber is separated fromthe adjacent one by Walls 10, the lower portion preferably provided withinsulating material 10', and forms a reservoir which contains washingliquor, a common level being established in the chambers by means ofbypasses 11 inserted in any desired manner but preferably passingoutside the casings so that regulating valves for both regulating as maybe desired, the flow of liquor to each chamber, and for .by-passing itas for cleaning etc., may be placed therein in accessible positions.

lf the cutting out of any one chamber of the series be not desired, itis obvious that the external controllable connections between theseveral chambers may be substituted by the forms described. in my PatentNo. 97 3,120 of October 18, 1910.

Preferably adjacent the inlet, or first gas chamber of the series, thereis a cooling chamber 12 whose lower, or liquor containing portion is incommunication with the corresponding parts of the gas Washing chambersby the by-pass 11 and a pressure equalizingconnection 13 so that thewashing liquor stands at the same level as 1n the other chambers.Cooling means, preferably in the form of coils 14 through which acooling medium is forced, are secured in the upper portion of thecooling chamber 12.

Thek washing liquor in the bases of the cooling and washing chambers isforced apparatus in the following manner; a pump indicated at 15 isarranged to force the ica il (l liquor from the base of the coolingchamber 12 along a suitable pipe line indicated diagrammatically at 16to the top fof the nchambers) another pump 19 then lifts thi:

liquor from the base of the chamber 6 to the top of the first gaschamber 1 through suitable piping indicated at 20 so that it falls overthe grids 3 to the base of chamber 1; it is then forced by a pump 21:from the base of chamber 1 through a pipe 22 and is caused to fall overand in intimate contact with the cooling means 14 to the base of thecooling chamber 12, whence it is withdrawn by the pump 15 to repeat theabove described cycle.V

An overflow 23 is provided yfor the removal of any surplus of liquorfrom the base of the cooler. Outlets 24with suitable valves andcontrolling connections are'provided for drawing oli at intervals theaccumulations of condensed tars decanted from the washing liquor in theseveral chambers.

In operation the washing liquor is kept in continuous circulationthrough the system in opposition to the gas current and rises intemperature because of its advancing contact with the gas so that whenwarmest it encounters gas at initial temperature the comminglingcurrents being thusrespectively gradually increased and reduced in tem-vperature so that as the gas leaves the apparatus it has just passed outthrough liquor fresh from the refrigerating coils. This avoids anyabrupt transitions in temperature in the gas which tend to br'eak up andthrow Kdown certainv constituents which are of value for illuminatingand heating pury poses. As, however, the quantity of liquor required toeect the cooling may not be coincident with theA 4quantity required towash out all the impurities, and as varying quantities of gas may makeit desirable to vary the zones within the apparatus wherein theprincipal temperature reduction and principal washing is performed, itis provided that Vthe pumps that force the water from each chamber 'ofthe .seriesto the next one are regulatable as to'their several"capacities or discharges, and thereby may deliver a different volume ofliquor into one or more of the chambers than is delivered into another,or from the refrigerating chamber into the last chamber 'of the series.'I his is possible because of the interconnec- ClOIl by the by-passes orother lsuitable means the pumps always have suiicient supply.

i, The by-passing of the gas over any one chamber which may be readilyaccomplished by this apparatus, permits the examination' and cleansingof any one chamber without stoppage of the entire apparatus. Theapparatus is compact as it is not necessary to extend the series ofchambers suiciently to have the cooling and washing effected by an evencirculation of the washing liquid Y of the bases of thewashing chambersso that through the system; its local acceleration in Y' the maincirculatory system accomplishes 'the removal of the tars and the likewithout affecting the gradual .cooling or without necessitating theextension of the gradual cooling through a long'seriesof chambers asvwould otherwise be necessary to make it coincident with the washing ofthe gas.

Obviously changes in-the det-ails of construction may be made withoutdeparting from. the spirit of my invention and I do not care to limitmyselfto any particular form or arrangement of parts.

What I claim is 1. In a gas washing and cooling apparatus, a seriesofchambersfin communication whereby gas may be passed therethrough insuccession, a washing liquor cooling chamber, means Jfor circulatingliquor from the cooling chamber through the chambers and returning it tothe cooling chamber, whereby it comes into intimate contact with gaspassing/'in opposite direction through the chambers, and means forlocally varying the volume of spray flow of the liquor injected into anywashing chamber without changing the rate ,of circulation through theappara- 'tus as a whole.

2. In a gas washing and cooling apparatus, a series of chambers incommunication whereby gas may be passed through the chambers insuccession, means for circulating washing and cooling liquor through thechambers in the opposite direction to a cui'- rent of-gas regulatable tovary the spray flow from any one chamber to the next without varying therate of flow through the system as a whole, and regulatable means forcooling the/liquor during the return thereof from contact with the gasto its initial point of contact therewith.

3.1In a gas washing and cooling apparatus, ,a series of chambers incommunication wherebygas may be passed therethrough in succession, awashing liquor coolingcchamber, means for forcing liquor from the coolv{ing .chamber through the washing chamber in succession in oppositedirection to the gas flow, regulatable to vary the volume of spray flowfrom any one chamber into the next without varying the rate of iow fromand to the liquor cooling chamber, and means `in the cooling chamber forcoo-ling the washing liquor to a predetermined point.

4. In a gas Washing and cooling appara-l tus, a series of chambershaving intake passages leading from the upper to the lower portionsthereof whereby gas may be passed4 upwardly through eachcchamber insuccession, gas baiing means in each chamber, a washing liquidcooling'chamber, means for forcing liquor from the la'tter coolingchamber through the series ofl chambers in oppoliquor cooling chamberwhose lower portion is also in communication with the lower port-ions ofthe other chambers for maintainingY a body of washing liquor therein atsubstantially the level of that in the other chainbers, a pump forforcing liquor from the base of the washing liquor cooling chamber intothe upper portion of the last chamber in the series, pumps each arrangedto force spraying liquid from the base of one chainber to the top of thepreceding chamber and from the bottom of the initial chamber ofthe/series to the upper portion of the wasliing liquid cooling chamber,and means for lowering the temperature of the return liquid in thewashing liquor cooling chamber before it is retiapped in the basethereof.

G. Ina gas washing and cooling apparatus, a series of chambers incommunication whereby gas may be passed through the chambers insuccession, means for circulating washing and cooling liquor through thechambers iu the yopposite direction to a current of gas regulatable tovary the spray flow from any one washing chamber to the,

next, and means for cooling the liquor during the return thereof fromfinal contact with the gas to its initial point of contact therewith. L

7. In a gas washing and cooling apparatus, a series of chambers eachhaving anV` intake passage leading from the upper to the-lower portionthereof whereby gas may be passed upwardly through the chambers insuccessiom, grids for battling the gas as it passes upwardly through thechambers, a liquor washing and cooling chamber, means for forcingwashing liquor from the cooling chamber into the upper portion of theoutlet chamber of the series to fall over the grids y against uprisinggas. means for forcing washing liquor from the bottom portion of eachchamber to the upper portion of the preceding chamber of theseries,regulatable to vary the volume of flow of such washingliquor, means fo-rreturning washing liquor from the inlet chamber of the series to thecooling chamber, and means for inaintaining a substantially common levelin the washing liquor in the several chambers.

g8. In a gas washing and cooling apparatus, a series of chambersarranged side by side with an inlet. gas passage extending from theupper portion of each downwardly therein, the chambers being incommunica-A tion whereby gas may be passed therethrough in succession,the lower portions of 'the chambers forming receptacles for washingliquor that are in communication for .maintaining a substantially commonlevel of liquor in the chambers, a washing liquor cooling chamber whoselower portion is in such communication with the other chainbers as tomaintain a level of washing liquor corresponding to that in the otherchambers, a pump for forcing liquor from the cooling chamber to theupper portion of the outlet chamber, pumps adapted to force washingliquor from the base of one chamber to the upper portion of thepreceding chamber and from the base 0f the inlet chamber to theupperfportion of the cooling chamber, and regulating means for coolingliquor returned to the cooling chamber. t 9. A gas washer and coolingsystem consisting of a series of washing chambers secured side b vsidein communication whereby gas may be passed upwardly through the chambersin succession, a washing liquor cooling chamberl` the lower yportions ofthe several chambers having restricted communication whereby washingliquor circulated through the chambers is maintained at sub-4 stantiallya common level in the several chambers, inea-ns for forcing cooledliquor from .the cooling chamber into the upper.,

port-ion of the outlet washing chamber and returning it therefromthrough the other chambers in succession, means in the chambers forbatliing the oppositely moving gas and water to thoroughly coinniingle,and regulatable rmeans for cooling the liquor as it is returned.

10.` series of chambers through which gas passes in succession; meansregulatable as to each chamber, for passing a washing and coolingvliquor therethrough in a cycle yand spraying a portion thereof in eachchamber, and means at a point in the system for cooling the washingliquor from the highest to the lowest temperature required in thesystem.

l1. A series of chambers through which gas passes in succession, meansfor passing a coolingl and washing liquor therethrough in a cycleoppositely to the flow of the gas and regulatable as to the liquorsprayed into each chamber, means at a point in the liquor circulationfor Collecting the Cooled said chambers and means for insulating the 10liquors employed in the Circulation and temperature in the severalchambers.

means for withdrawing any surplus of liq- In testimony whereof I aiiX mysignature uor after it has been subjected to the coolin presence of twowitnesses. lng medium. Q

12. A series of chambers through which ERNEST F' LLOYD' gas passes insuccession, means for passing Witnesses: va cooling and washing liquortherethrough, OTTO F. BARTHEL,

means for trapping liquor in the .bases of ANNA M. Domi.

